Trick-or-Treat

We enjoyed an unseasonably warm day today here in the Midwest, enabling our kids to go trick-or-treating without parka's covering their costume's. Jake was a bit confused by the event, but quickly caught on to the idea of getting a bucket full of candy.

I know I'm biased, but these little guys are stinkin' cute!

The kids worked hard, walking all over the neighborhood. Here they are examining their big haul.

"I'm getting a bit long in the tooth."

"Maybe if I give you my cute, cheesey smile, you'll give me a few more pieces of candy before I have to go to bed."

This was Jake's response when we told him we were going to spread the wealth and take a portion of his candy to give to Mom and Dad after he went to bed.

Two years ago today...

Gotcha Day!

Two years ago today, we were in Taiyuan, China, meeting our little man, Jordan! (Yep, it was Halloween.) It's hard to believe that two years have passed since that memorable day.

He is still a quiet--sometimes worried--little guy, who likes to line his toys up and keep a close eye on 'his stuff.' He likes cars, trains, and blocks. He tends to be an observer, rather than a joiner, although likes to play with his siblings.

He has come a long way. When we got him, he didn't know how to be held, and would keep his body stiff as a board. We gradually taught him to bend his legs and put his arms around our neck. Recently, he has finally been letting his entire body relax into us when held. Hooray for Jordan! He also tells us he loves us, which was another huge milestone for him. He is such a sweet little boy. Happy Gotcha Day, Jordan! We love you!

Life is Precious

I know I said I was not going to post anything political on this blog, but I saw this video today and felt compelled to share it. When I look at my precious kids, I am so thankful that their birth mothers chose life and that those little lives now grace my own.

I have been trying to embed the video in my blog but it keeps giving me an error message, so I will have to send you to the site where it was originally posted. It is a Catholic website and although I am not Catholic, I wanted to share it. Click here to view....

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful. I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Psalm 139: 13-16

Hunting and Muddin'

What do teenage boys in our area do for fun? Deer hunting season has arrived, and also some fall rain. This means that two fall sports...hunting and muddin'...have begun. Ryan has been trying his hand at both.

What is 'muddin' you ask? It is taking your four wheel drive pick-up truck to your friend's muddy field, and driving around in the mud. If one truck gets stuck, it becomes a competition to see whose truck is big enough and strong enough to pull out the vehicle that is buried up to its axles. Do not call this sport 'mudding.' If you do, everyone will know that you are not a true mudder. The correct terminology is 'muddin.' Let's just say, I don't really get the appeal of this sport.

THIS IS A PHOTO FROM LAST SPRING

RYAN PARKED HIS TRUCK IN OUR DRIVEWAY AND LET THE MUD FALL OFF. JEFF WAS PLEASED. NOT.

Deer season for bow hunters, opened a few weeks ago. Ryan was quite excited about sitting in a tree for hours, waiting for a deer to happen by. He didn't see a deer, but while he was gone, we took these pictures from our back door - looking out over our yard and the greenspace behind us.

Fall Color

Fall in the midwest is a beautiful time of year. I have a friend who reads this blog who has moved to California and misses the weather changes. In her honor, here are some photos of the brilliance around us right now. The camera doesn't do it justice, but you can get an idea of the colors. Sorry in advance for the pictures I took while driving...hehe...

Trip to the Apple Cider Mill

On Saturday, while traveling back from a college entrance exam for Ryan, we stopped at a cider mill. I won't bore you with the details of why we were all on this outing, but suffice it to say, we had all the kids with us.

I was very excited about the cider mill, wanting to share fond childhood memories of cider mills with my offspring. Everyone was agreeable until we neared the mill and saw the crowds. The teens and the husband groaned in dismay. Only at Cedar Point (or any other amusement park) could big crowds and long lines of this magnitude be tolerated.

I was undaunted, figuring it must be a great place if so many people were there. The little kids were excited, so we all piled out and tried to stay together amid the throng. We eventually found our way to the barn where they were pressing the apples and took the kids inside for some cider and donuts. Yum... Jeff and the older boys had long before, lost their willingness to participate. I think it evaporated before they even got out of the car.

EVERY PARTY HAS SOME POOPERS.....


CIDER AND DONUTS....YUM!











Then came the big excitement! The train!


It was cheaper to purchase 10 tickets than to purchase 8, so Jeff bought 10. He would want you to know that he had to stand in a long line to do this. Since we had enough tickets for Ryan and Taylor, and they had nothing else to do, they stood with us in another long line to ride the 'glorified golf cart' train. My amused observation to the older boys, that they LIKE riding in golf carts, was met with eye rolling and more complaining about the long line and how hot they were. Oblivious to the distress of their older siblings, the little kids were happily estimating how many more times the train would come before it would be our turn.


JAKE IS HAVING A GREAT TIME!


JEFF AND TAYLOR SARCASTICALLY RAISING THEIR HANDS AS IF ON A ROLLER COASTER

We decided to be merciful and leave after the exhilarating, three-minute train ride. It was a beautiful fall day and we enjoyed the scenery on the way home.

Happy Belated Gotcha Day, SaraGrace!

Friday was SaraGrace's third Gotcha Day. It was our mutual Gotcha Day, because we got her - but she also 'got' our hearts.

She loves princess clothes. Animals. Rainbows. Hugs. Kisses. Her family. And drama. Lots and lots of drama.

She often says with a big smile and great passion, "I LOVE my family. I'm so glad Jesus gave me a family." She often tells us that we are the best parents in the whole world. She regularly calls me "my sweetie-pie Mommy." God has given her great spirit, and due to that passionate nature, she is well aquainted with the time-out chair. (wry grin)

She refers to herself as 'your little honey" or "spitfire" depending on her mood. She is a study in contrasts and keeps us on our toes. We adore her and are so thankful to God for blessing our lives with this little punkin!

Froggy II

SaraGrace befriended another froggy. While her sisters cower and gasp, SaraGrace remains unafraid and doesn't get grossed out by slimy frog bodies.

Froggy II had some talents that Froggy I did not possess.


He was an excellent driver,


with a perfect driving record.


He flew fighter planes fearlessly.


He was adored and carried in a baby carrier.




Sadly, he met an untimely demise, an apparent victim of an accidental fall from a plane. SaraGrace cried real tears and in an effort to comfort her, big sister Molly made a little gravestone. Biggest sister, Jillian, dug a small grave and buried froggy. Molly said a prayer over him and they all sprinkled flowers over froggy's grave.



"Bye-bye, little friend."

Perhaps we should switch to stuffed froggy friends.

Trip to the Zoo

The weather has been beautiful this week, so we called Grandma and Grandpa to see if they wanted to meet us at the zoo. They did...and here are some pictures of our fun day!

What a magnificent animal!




Wheee!!!!!



Riding on the train




Cheesy smiles with Grandpa and cousin Jackson


Beautiful flower that is part of the zoo grounds

Baby Formula News

Many of you have probably heard about the tainted baby formula in China. We are currently waiting for our agency to attempt to check on Zoey. Her orphanage had been getting formula donated by a local charity but it recently went out of business. We are not sure if Zoey would have started getting the tainted formula at that point. We are concerned and hoping/praying for good news.

Someday My Prince Will Come

But for today, I only have a frog.


"COME HERE LITTLE FWOGGIE...YOU CANNOT ESCAPE MY CLUTCHES."



"HE'S MINE!



"OH AWRIGHT, I'LL KISS YOU BUT I DON'T THINK YOU'LL TURN INTO A PRINCE."



"PWAY WIF ME! YOU CAN BE MY BEST BUDDY!"



THIS IS WHY FOUR YEAR OLD'S SHOULDN'T HAVE PETS.



"HI FWOGGIE, I WILL TAKE GOOD CARE OF YOU AND ROCK YOU TO SWEEP."



FROGGIE IS THINKING, 'MAYBE IF I PLAY DEAD, THE PRINCESS WILL LEAVE ME ALONE."

Froggie did make a few mad dashes for freedom only to be captured once more by a very determined four year old. He took his admonishment with grace.



"DON'T YOU DARE HOP AWAY FROM ME AGAIN, MISTUH."

Little froggie has kept SaraGrace entertained for hours. She wants to play with him until her big sisters come home from school. She named him Sara. Him. She picked up froggie's front leg, examined it closely and said, 'I wike you nails.' Thankfully, she didn't want to paint them. She is carefully 'watering' him every five minutes to keep him wet and happy. This frog will have an adventure to tell his family about tonight.

No animals were severely harmed in the creating of this post. Amphibian in question will be let go after a few more hours of being treated to 'best buddy' status by SaraGrace.

Helping God

I have lots of little helpers at my house. They are so eager to help when they aren't all that useful. There are so many times when they offer to 'help' and I groan inside because I know it's going to make my task take twice as long.

It got me wondering... Does God feel this way when I eagerly offer Him my 'help?' Perhaps He smiles but also knows that having me 'help' Him means that it will take Him a lot longer to accomplish His purposes than if He just did the job Himself. He doesn't really need my help, but He LETS me help Him.

Maybe He lets me help Him for the same reasons I let my kids help me. It's good for them. They are happy when they are doing something to help me. They feel useful. It teaches them to give of themselves to help someone else. They learn to do new things and they grow from it.

I do get some benefit out of it. It makes me happy to see the smiles of satisfaction on their little faces when they are finished. They love to hear me say, "You did such a great job!" We both end up feeling good.

How many times have I 'helped' God and then felt that He owed me something in return? How many times have I felt noble for 'all I have done for Him?' How silly. He doesn't NEED me to help. He LETS me be a part of something so much bigger than I could ever comprehend. I need to keep that in perspective and thank Him for the opportunity.

So...thank you, God, for letting me be a part of what You are doing in the world. Thank you for the privilege of 'helping' once in awhile. Thank you for Your patience as I stumble clumsily through the tasks You have allowed me to do.

And thank you for letting me be a mom so that I can see Your love for me playing out in a practical way every day.